Egypt: Interior Ministry Bashed for Using Children as ‘Informants’

Egyptians have criticized an interior ministry’s cartoon in which the police urges children to report suspicious activities and ‘bad guys’ without referring to parents.

A cartoon launched by the interior ministry late last month has drawn criticism from the public that deemed the content dangerous.

The call on children to have complete trust and cooperate with the police has backfired. For Parents and activists, the government is turning kids into ‘informants’, Middle East Eye (MEE) reported.

A second episode of the cartoon, released Saturday, shows two kids, Fateen and Bolbol, running to a police officer to report on two neighbors’ suspicious behavior. The police officer thanked them and instructed them not tell anyone, not even their parents, about what they had reported.

“Well done, kids, for reporting when you see something suspicious,” the police officer said while the kids were asking for a candy as a reward.

The officer sent forces to detain the neighbors.

According to the interior ministry, the cartoon seeks to protect minds of children and teach them the role of the police in serving children.